Babson Park, MA --- Alice Kelly (Wethersfield, CT) and Emmy Allyn (Rutland, MA) combined to deliver 10 points first quarter points to help WPI to jump out to an early lead they would never relinquish as the Engineers kicked off the 2025 portion of their schedule by defeating Rivier 69-58 in the opening contest of the Judy Pearson '85 Memorial Tournament hosted by Babson.
 
The victory gives the Engineers the season sweep of the Raiders as the Crimson and Gray had notched a 74-71 triumph back on November 16th in Harrington Auditorium.  WPI, winners of two straight, moves to 6-4 on the season while Rivier, which saw its season-best four-game win streak snapped in the contest, is now 4-6 overall.
 
Worcester's Engineers shot 54.5% from the field in the opening 10 minutes on their way to sprinting out to 14-9 edge after the opening stanza.  Allyn netted the first two baskets of the game as WPI scored the first four points while Kelly buried both of her trifecta attempts in the final five minutes of the frame.  A Leila Nielsen (New York, BY) 3-pointer in the final minute before the half as the Crimson and Gray kept their five-point advantage at the half at 29-24.
 
WPI put the game away in the third quarter, shooting 54.5% for a second time in the game, highlighted by a pair of 3-pointers from Allyn, six points from Kelly and five by Megan Stone (Hanson, MA).  The Raiders would creep back to within seven of a pair of occasions in the fourth quarter, but a 11-of-12 performance from the charity stripe in the final quarter, including 9-of-10 over the last 1:07, with Shannon Reno (Millbury, MA) canned 5-of-6 herself.
 
Kelly registered 20 points and added eight rebounds and a pair of swipes.   Three other WPI players joined her in double-figure scoring including Allyn (16), Stone (11) and Ava Giansiracusa (Wethersfield, CT) (10) with Stone's total a new career-high.  Giansiracusa led all players by handing out four assists, Reno gobbled up four boards and Allyn filled the stat sheet with four points, three assists and three rebounds.
 
Graduate student Lyric Grumblatt (Manchester, NH) reached the 30-point mark for the four time this season for Rivier with a 32-point showing on Thursday, draining 10-of-25 tries from the field.  Hannah Muchemore (Nashua, NH) and Alexa Dufries (Leicester, MA) both chipped in with 11 points apiece with Muchemore snatching four steals.  The trio accounted for 54 of the Raiders 58 points on the day.
 
WPI concludes play in the Judy Pearson '85 Memorial Tournament on Friday, tangling with Maine Maritime at 3pm back at Babson's Staake Gymnasium, while the Raiders square off with the host Beavers immediately following at 5pm.